This application relates generally to General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Media Access Control (MAC) procedures and, more particularly, to GPRS MAC procedures to support delay-sensitive, real-time traffic.
GPRS refers to a technology that increases data transmission speeds from 9.6 Kbps to over 100 Kbps, is packet based, and supports the leading internet communication protocols, Internet Protocol (IP) and X.25. As such, an internet connection, for example, can be extended directly to a mobile device thereby bypassing dial-up from an internet service provider. GPRS will complement rather than replace the current data services available through today""s Global Services for Mobile communications (GSM) digital cellular networks such as circuit-switched data and Short Message Service. While the majority of wireless applications tend to be text oriented, the high throughput offered by GPRS provides multimedia content capability (such as graphical web-based applications).
MAC performs most of the data link layer functions (Layer 2) of the Open Systems Interconnection communication reference model. Layer 1 is the detailed physical level that involves actually generating and receiving the electronic signals while Layer 3 is the higher level that has knowledge about the network, including access to router tables that indicate where to forward data. The two approaches to MAC are called controlled access/polling and contention. Controlled access describes a processor that determines which device can access network media at a particular time. Polling involves sending a signal to a terminal giving it permission to
transmit or asking it to receive while contention permits the signal to be transmitted and/or received at any time.
Although the conventional GPRS MAC/Radio Link Control (which supports link layer packet transmission) procedures provide certain advantages, they do no support real-time packet services such as voice over IP (VoIP).
Therefore, an improved system and method for GPRS MAC procedures to support delay-sensitive, real-time traffic is desired to reduce or eliminate these limitations and design complexities.
In response to these and other limitations, provided herein is a unique system and method for GPRS MAC procedures to support delay-sensitive, real-time traffic.
The system (or communication network) comprises a mobile station able to transmit packets to and receive packets from a base station, where the base station is coupled to a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) network, and where the GPRS network is coupled to a data network. In one embodiment, the base station receives an empty packet from the mobile station. The base station releases a bandwidth allocated to the mobile station if an implementation dependent time expires and allocates a reduced portion of the bandwidth to the mobile station if a number of the empty packets are received.
In some embodiments, the mobile station transmits the packets via the reduced portion of the bandwidth when the packets again need to be transmitted.
In some embodiments, the base station receives the packets and re-allocates the bandwidth to the mobile station, when a first one of the packets is received by the base station.
In some embodiments, the base station re-allocates the bandwidth to the mobile station, when a control message requesting more bandwidth is received by the base station.
In some embodiments, a high priority to the bandwidth allocated for conversational class packets is provided.
In some embodiments, a base station allocates a fixed number of radio resources to a mobile station.
In some embodiments, the base station releases the fixed number of radio resources, if the fixed number of radio resources are not utilized.
In some embodiments, the base station allocates a reduced portion of the fixed number of radio resources to the mobile station if a number of empty packets are received.
In some embodiments, the mobile station transmits the packets via the reduced portion of the fixed number of radio resources.
In some embodiments, the base station receives the packets and re-allocates the fixed number of radio resources to the mobile station when a first one of the packets is received by the base station.
In some embodiments, a high priority to the fixed number of radio resources allocated for conversational class packets is provided.
In some embodiments, the packets comprise real-time voice packets, real-time data packets, real-time multi-media packets, and/or signaling packets.
These advantages, as well as others which will become apparent, are described in greater detail with respect to the drawings and the following disclosure.